"My older brother drowned when he was 9 years old, and my mother had a nervous breakdown because of it. She was institutionalized for a year, but my father stayed strong and took care of us. I never saw him cry, although I know it hurt him. He wasn't a church-going man, but he was loving, with a heart of gold, and he always prayed at the table. He always said, 'Tomorrow's going to be a better day. We're going to make it through this.' When my mother came back home, her sisters kept her busy and that helped her heal.

"We had a strong family, and that carried over into raising my own children. As my three boys were growing up, we had open house conversation two nights a week, where I said, 'What's going on in your life? Feel free to speak now. If something is bothering you, you need to get it out and we'll help you. You can always talk to your parents.' We had strong moral rules in our house too. I told my boys, 'This is what you're going to do, and this is what you're not going to do.' I taught them to be around people who would help them go in the right direction. I told them, 'If you're doing something wrong and you don't leave it behind, it will leave you behind on down the road.'"